As Catholics, should we have a devotion to our Lady? Isn’t Jesus enough? What is, and how do we develop, a true devotion to our Lady?
Let us ponder what the Bible [1], the Church and the Saints teach us about this crucial topic.
Play on Spotify to listen to the full podcast:
Opening Prayer – Sub Tuum Praesidium (Ancient Prayer to our Lady)
English: We fly to thy protection, O Holy Mother of God. Despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O Glorious and Blessed Virgin. | Latin: Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genetrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. |
(Sing the Latin version using this YouTube link: Choeur des moines de l’Abbaye de Ligugé - Sub tuum praesidium).
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Part 1: Should we have a devotion to our Lady? Isn’t Jesus enough? [2]
This is a really soul-probing question.
I have had a personal and intimate relationship with Jesus for more than 24 years – but not one with our Blessed Mother.
I understood and accepted with my head how important she is in my Christian life and the life of the Church – which I endeavoured to live out through my regular Rosaries and the almost customary or “mandatory” “Hail Mary” at the end of every corporate prayer which I lead in my family, community or other ministry events.
I also knew the key Scriptural verses which pertain to our Lady.
But my heart did not quite follow.
So when I was tasked with writing this section, in truth, I felt completely unsuitable and fake. I half-protested, and prayed:
“Lord, ask someone else please, someone else with a true and deep devotion to our Lady?
Blessed Mother, help me – show me how real you are, and help me to fall in love with you.”
The Lord and our Lady must have convened at dinner somewhere in heaven - they had a beautiful surprise in store for me.
1.1 Piety, Liturgy and Mary
In preparation to write this section, my dear friend Nick invited me to read Pope Paul VI’s Marialis Cultus (1974) (“for the right ordering and development of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary”).
To be candid, that was the first time I have heard of this document. But I started reading it prayerfully.
And its starting point, to my surprise, was to turn our attention to the sacred liturgy.
Pope St. Paul VI tells us that “the liturgy through its pre-eminent value as worship constitutes the golden norm for Christian piety” [3].
In other words, the liturgy tells us what the Church believes, honours and venerates throughout the ages [4], and this sets the tone and model for each of us to do likewise.
So I started looking into the liturgy for what it says about Mary. And the results surprised me.
Our Lady is everywhere.
Starting with the great number of Solemnities, Feast Days and commemorations in the General Calendar dedicated to or closely associated with our Lady, which Pope Paul VI brings us through [5]:
8 December – The Immaculate Conception of Mary (Solemnity)
During Advent (many liturgical references to Mary)
Christmas season, especially the Solemnity of the Birth of Christ which both adores the Saviour and venerates his glorious Mother
Feast of the Holy Family (Sunday after Christmas)
Epiphany of the Lord (Solemnity)
1 January – Mary, the Holy Mother of God (Solemnity)
2 February – The Presentation of the Lord (Feast)
11 February – Our Lady of Lourdes
25 March – The Annunciation of the Lord (Solemnity)
31 May – The Visitation (Feast)
Sat after 2nd Sunday after Pentecost – The Immaculate Heart of Mary
16 July – Our Lady of Mount Carmel
5 August – The Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major
15 August – The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Solemnity)
22 August – The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary
8 September – The Nativity of our Lady
15 September – Our Lady of Sorrows
7 October – Our Lady of the Rosary
Saturday memorials of our Lady (in ordinary time)
As I read on, Pope Paul VI gives two deeply familiar-sounding examples of the Church’s veneration of our Lady as found daily in the Eucharistic Prayers [6]:
“In union with the whole Church we honor Mary, the ever-virgin Mother of Jesus Christ our Lord and God.” (from the ancient Roman Canon, the Eucharistic Prayer I) [7].
“May he make us an everlasting gift to you [the Father] and enable us to share in the inheritance of your saints, with Mary, the Virgin Mother of God.” (Eucharistic Prayer III) [8].
This triggered strong memories in me, as I have heard these precious words repeatedly throughout my life, since I was a child.
In the Nicene Creed (which summarize the Catholic faith we profess [9]), we bow at the following words, whereby our Lady is specifically named:
“For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.”
The commemoration of the Blessed Virgin also occurs often in the Missal, the Lectionary and the Liturgy of the Hours [10].
Mary is everywhere in the liturgy, both historically and presently.
As Pope St. Paul VI rightly asserts: “When the liturgy turns its gaze either to the primitive Church or to the Church of our own days it always finds Mary [11].”
He goes on to explain:
“If one studies the history of Christian worship, in fact, one notes that both in the East and in the West the highest and purest expressions of devotion to the Blessed Virgin have sprung from the liturgy or have been incorporated into it [12].”
It dawned upon me that the Church’s 2000-year long veneration of and devotion to our Lady [13] is not only consistent with Sacred Scripture, but it is also in harmony with living Tradition, as expressed, proven by or incorporated into the liturgy. Pope St. Paul VI expertly explains this:
“From perennial Tradition kept alive by reason of the uninterrupted presence of the Spirit and continual attention to the Word, the Church of our time draws motives, arguments and incentives for the veneration that she pays to the Blessed Virgin. And the liturgy, which receives approval and strength from the magisterium, is a most lofty expression and an evident proof of this living Tradition [14].”
Perennial and living Tradition (with a capital “T”). Wow. This hit me like a ton of bricks. It is as authoritative as it gets. Veneration of and devotion to our Lady is entirely aligned with the desires and wishes of God, as part of our Christian piety.
It felt as if Jesus himself was speaking to or showing this to me, “Love and be devoted to my and your Mother – as I showed you on the Cross, ‘Behold, your mother [15]!’”
And that I am personally called, as a disciple whom Jesus loves, to take Mary my Mother, “from that hour”, into my “own home” [16]!
I now truly realized, personally and powerfully – that to be Catholic is to be Marian.
1.2 My Meditation and Prayer
As the weight of this realization struck me to the core of my heart, I could read no more (of Marialis Cultus). I staggered into my room to meditate and to pray.
As I meditated on what I read thus far in Marialis Cultus in my room in the afternoon, I unexpectedly and suddenly received a tremendous infusion of grace and love in my heart, from and for our Lady.
To the point that I was tearing, as I soaked in the affections of our Lady, as I contemplated her place in the Church and in my life. I tangibly felt her maternal closeness and tender, sweet love.
And I found myself, in tears, praying to my dear Mother:
“O Mother. You are so full of grace, that he who seeks grace without resorting to you, is like attempting to fly without wings [17].
If I am seeking the graces of God, which I am, who is so full of grace that I should ask for assistance?
It is you, O Blessed Mother!”
Then I prayed my most intense, meaning-infused, weighty “Hail Mary” that I have ever prayed in my life:
“Hail Mary, full of grace…”
And I paused there, lips trembling, and could pray no further, as the weight and significance of these words hit me with full force.
A deep sleep then overcame me, and I slept in great peace and quiet, with an incomparable restfulness not only of the body, but as I felt, also in my soul.
1.3 A New Beginning
Reflecting upon this, it was a totally unexpected and beautiful experience - a conversion of heart, for the beginning of a deeper and personal devotion to our Lady.
As I later came to realise as I knelt before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament:
“O Mother, my love for Jesus is neither distracted nor diluted by my devotion for you, instead, it is enriched and elevated [18].”
So the answer to the question at the start of this article is, Yes, we should have a devotion to our Lady. Indeed, to be Catholic is to be Marian.
1.4 The Church’s Teaching and Exhortation
In this regard, the Second Vatican Council in Lumen Gentium at 54 powerfully affirms that the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God “occupies a place in the Church which is the highest after Christ and yet very close to us.”
The Second Vatican Council in Lumen Gentium at 67 also goes on to exhort all the children of the Church that “the cult [19], especially the liturgical cult, of the Blessed Virgin be generously fostered”. Pope St. Paul VI, citing this line, added that this “is an exhortation that we would like to see accepted everywhere without reservation and put into zealous practice” [20].
Let us all accept without reservation and zealously put into practice the Church’s exhortation for us to generously foster a devotion to our Lady!
Part 2: Popular Piety, True Devotion and Pious Marian Exercises
2.1 Popular Piety [21]
Devotion to our Blessed Mother, however, is not limited to the liturgical realm.
The Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines reminds us that:
“Liturgical worship, notwithstanding its objective and irreplaceable importance, its exemplary efficacy and normative character, does not in fact exhaust all the expressive possibilities of the People of God for devotion to the Holy Mother of God [22].”
As usual, the Church in her wisdom balances both fidelity and pastoral prudence. It notes for instance that “[f]orms of popular religiosity can sometimes appear to be corrupted by factors that are inconsistent with Catholic doctrine [23].”
However, the Church also recommends that condemnation should not be the first response. Rather, “they must be patiently and prudently purified through contacts with those responsible and through careful and respectful catechesis [24].”
2.2 True Devotion to our Lady and Some Pious Marian Exercises Recommended by the Magisterium [25]
It is thus important to know the principles taught by the Church on what constitutes true devotion to our Lady, including the exercises of piety directed towards her. Some of these principles include:
Filial Love and Imitation of Her Virtues: “[T]rue devotion consists neither in sterile or transitory affection, nor in a certain vain credulity [26], but proceeds from true faith, by which we are led to know the excellence of the Mother of God, and we are moved to a filial love toward our mother and to the imitation of her virtues” [27].
Fundamental Principle: The fundamental principle of the Magisterium with regard to such pious exercises is that they should be derivative from the “one worship which is rightly called Christian, because it efficaciously originates in Christ, finds full expression in Christ, and through Him, in the Holy Spirit leads to the Father” [28].
Trinitarian and Christological: Exercises of piety directed towards the Virgin Mary “should clearly express the Trinitarian and Christological note that is intrinsic and essential to them” [29].
Some of the pious Marian exercises recommended by the Magisterium include [30]:
Prayerfully hearing the Word of God (pertaining to our Lady, especially at significant moments throughout the Liturgical Year).
The Angelus at 6am, 12pm and 6pm throughout the year (except Easter).
The Regina Coeli at 6am, 12pm and 6pm during the Easter season.
The Rosary [31].
Litanies of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Consecration and Entrustment to Mary. A recommended book in preparation for such a consecration is 33 Days to Morning Glory by Fr. Michael Gaitley MIC.
The Brown Scapular and other Scapulars.
Medals, especially the Miraculous Medal.
The “Akathistos” Hymn.
2.3 Eia Ergo Advocata Nostra
Allow us to share just one more beautiful and pious Marian exercise.
Since the time of St. Bernard, the Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) has been sung by religious in monasteries throughout the world in honour of the Blessed Mother [32].
In many Dominican houses, after Compline each night, the Salve is sung (in Latin) in procession to the statue of our Lady. During the procession as the words “eia ergo advocata nostra” (which means “Hail, therefore, our advocate”) are sung, the community kneels. A designated prayer leader then walks down the aisle and blesses the brethren and sisters with holy water. This tradition is steeped in Dominican history and originated in a story of the Blessed Virgin’s visitation to St. Dominic [33].
“One night St. Dominic came upon a heavenly trio as he made his way through the dormitory of the brethren. Three radiant women came toward him as the one in the center made the sign of the cross with an asperges brush dipped in holy water, blessing the cells of the sleeping friars. The astonished St. Dominic knelt at their feet, looked toward the most beautiful woman in the middle and asked her who she was. The Blessed Mother replied, “I am she whom you invoke every evening, and when you say, ‘eia ergo advocata nostra,’ I prostrate before my Son for the preservation of this Order.” When St. Dominic inquired about the other holy women with her, she identified them as St. Cecilia and St. Catherine of Alexandria [34].”
What a beautiful and inspiring story! May we be moved to do likewise, and to invoke our Lady every day, through the Salve Regina or other pious Marian exercises, as she in turn intercedes for us before our Lord Jesus Christ to preserve our life of discipleship, and our marriages, families, communities and ministries.
Conclusion
Let us ask the Lord, and our Lady herself, for the grace of a true and deeper devotion to our Lady, that we may be moved to a filial love towards her and to the imitation of her virtues, and in so doing, foster our immediate and closer union with Christ.
Closing Prayer – Salve Regina
English: Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; To thee do we send up our sighs,mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate,thine eyes of mercy toward us; and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. | Latin: Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiae, vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve. Ad te clamamus exsules filii Evae. Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes, in hac lacrimarum valle. Eia, ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte. Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui, nobis post hoc exsilium ostende. O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria. |
(Sing the Latin version using this YouTube link: Salve Regina [450 voices – virtual choir] by Canto Católico, recordings made during the quarantine of Covid-19 in April 2020).
Pray for us O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
* Is there anything in this session which struck you or any thoughts, experiences or ideas which come to your mind? Please leave a comment below. We would love to hear from you.
** Thank you for joining us on the A-Z of DiscipleSHIP. We look forward to having you with us again next month, as we study the letter “R”, on Reason and Faith.
Recommended Closing Song
See the YouTube links accompanying each of the opening and closing prayers above (Sub tuum praesidium and Salve Regina).
Ave Maria (As I Kneel Before You) by Fr. Columba (beautiful acoustic version).
Salve Regina – Gregorian Chant, solemn melody
Recommended Reading / Resources
Pope Paul VI’s Marialis Cultus (1974) (“for the right ordering and development of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary”).
Lumen Gentium at Chapter VIII (at 52-69) on “The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God in the Mystery of Christ and the Church”.
Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines (2001), Chapter Five (at 183-207) on “Veneration of the Holy Mother of God”.
Dr. Mark Miravalle, Mariology: A Guide for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians and Consecrated Persons (2013).
Reflection and Sharing Questions
This month’s podcast considers whether we should have a devotion to our Lady, and if so, what is, and how do we develop, a true devotion to her. The key points may be summarized as follows:
We should have a devotion to our Lady. Indeed, to be Catholic is to be Marian.
The Magisterium set out various important principles for what constitutes true devotion to our Lady, including that we should be “moved to a filial love toward our mother and to the imitation of her virtues” [35].
There are several pious Marian exercises recommended by the Magisterium, including but not limited to the Angelus and the Rosary, amongst many others.
Developing a Devotion: Do you have a devotion to our Lady? If not, what practical steps can you take to get to know and love our Lady, and to develop a true devotion to her?
Practising Pious Exercises: What are some of the pious Marian exercises that you can begin to undertake, to increase, or to carry out more faithfully and devoutly? Share this with one another, and keep each other accountable.
© Presented by the Catholic Theology Network (writers / contributors / sound): Dominic Chan (M.A., Theology, Augustine Institute), Nick Chui (MTS, JPII Institute for Marriage and Family, AU), Keenan Tan (M.A., Theology, Augustine Institute), Debra Dass (Diploma in Theology, CTIS), Marcia Vanderstraaten (Diploma in Theology, CTIS); publicity & design: Chandra Nugraha (Certificate in Catholic Theology, Augustine Institute)
Footnotes
1. Unless otherwise stated, all Scripture references are taken from the RSV 2nd CE.
2. Part 1 is written by Dominic.
3. Marialis Cultus, 23.
4. To be clear, Catholics do not worship Mary. Instead, we accord her “hyperdulia”. “Dulia” is veneration of those above us, i.e. those who have achieved a level of excellence beyond us. “Dulia” is accorded to angels and saints, whereas “hyperdulia” is accorded to the Blessed Mary. Worship is reserved for God alone. See also this explanation of “hyperdulia” by Catholic Culture.
5. See Marialis Cultus, 2-9 for a beautiful elaboration by Pope St. Paul VI on the significance of all these Solemnities, Feast Days and commemorations.
6. Marialis Cultus, 10.
7. Eucharistic Prayer I (from the 1975 edition of the Sacramentary for Mass) quoted in Marialis Cultus, 10.
8. Eucharistic Prayer III (from the 1975 edition of the Sacramentary for Mass) quoted in Marialis Cultus, 10.
9. See CCC 187 (“Such syntheses are called 'professions of faith' since they summarize the faith that Christians profess. They are called 'creeds' on account of what is usually their first word in Latin: credo ("I believe"). They are also called 'symbols of faith'.”)
10. Marialis Cultus, 14.
11. Marialis Cultus, 11. See also the text / lyrics of the “Divine Praises”, where a significant 4 out of 14 lines are directed towards our Blessed Mother, “Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy. Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception. Blessed be her glorious Assumption. Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.”
12. Marialis Cultus, 15.
13. See Marialis Cultus, 15, “We wish to emphasize the fact that the veneration which the universal Church today accords to blessed Mary is a derivation from and an extension and unceasing increase of the devotion that the Church of every age has paid to her, with careful attention to truth and with an ever watchful nobility of expression.” In other words, the Church of every age and including the Church of today has always venerated and been devoted to our Lady.
14. Marialis Cultus, 15.
15. See John 19:26-27.
16. See John 19:27, “And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home”.
17. Cf. Dante’s prayer to the Blessed Virgin, see Marialis Cultus, 13 and footnote 34 (“Cf. La Divina Commedia, Paradiso XXXIII, 1-9 cf Liturgy of the Hours, remembrance of Our Lady on Saturdays, Office of Reading Hymn.”). One translation online provides, “Lady you are so great, and of such value, that if any who wishes for grace fails to resort to you, his longing tries to fly without wings. Your kindness not only helps those who ask it, it often freely anticipates the request.”
18. See also Lumen Gentium at 61, “For all the salvific influence of the Blessed Virgin on men originates, not from some inner necessity, but from the divine pleasure. It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on His mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it. In no way does it impede, but rather does it foster the immediate union of the faithful with Christ.”
19. The relevant dictionary meaning of “cult” in this context would be “a system of religious veneration and devotion towards a particular figure or object” (Oxford Languages).
20. Marialis Cultus, 23.
21. Part 2.1 is written by Nick.
24. Ibid.
25. Parts 2.2 are 2.3 are written by Dominic.
26. “Credulity” means “a tendency to be too ready to believe that something is real or true” (Oxford Languages).
27. Lumen Gentium at 67.
28. Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines, 186, citing Marialis Cultus, introduction, which states, “This devotion fits-as we have indicated above-into the only worship that is rightly called "Christian," because it takes its origin and effectiveness from Christ, finds its complete expression in Christ, and leads through Christ in the Spirit to the Father.”
29. Marialis Cultus, 25.
30. Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines, 192-207. See also Marialis Cultus, at 40-55 on the Angelus and the Rosary.
31. See also “B” for Bible and “P” for Prayer where we have highly and strongly recommended the regular and devout praying of the Rosary.
33. Ibid.
35. Lumen Gentium at 67.